We've been fans of Somerville, Massachusetts' Taza Chocolate for a while now. We did a beer pairing with them in February 2008 and found their chocolate to be amazing with a variety of beers. When we heart that Watch City Brewing in Waltham, MA had partnered with them to brew a chocolate porter we knew we had to go check it out. The beer, dubbed "Chocolate Thunder" incorporates 45 pounds of Taza's 70% Dark Stone Ground Chocolate and 5 pounds of Taza's Chocolate Mexicano Vanilla Bean. This is one really delicious beer! Any fan of Taza will be able to pick up the signature complexity of the chocolate in the brew as well as a raw subtle sweetness that helps round out the finish. While this is certainly no light beer it manages to be very drinkable and doesn't feel heavy. Aaron Mateychuk, the brewer at Watch City, has managed to blend the roasty malt flavors with the bitter dark chocolate notes without making the beer itself feel overly bitter.
Alex Whitemore, of Taza Chocolate, was on hand for the release. While this beer is amazing on its own, we were lucky enough to pair the beer with the chocolate which really brings it up another notch. While we can't guarantee the brewpub approves, bring in some Taza with you to the bar and do the pairing yourself, trust us on this one. The Chocolate Mexicano Salted Almond goes especially well with the chocolate in the beer, creating an almost peanut butter and chocolate experience.
On a side note, having tasted some of Taza's new chocolates, look out for an all new event with DrinkCraftBeer and Taza Chocolate coming soon. Stay tuned for more details.